Home for Christmas
by CeliaEquus
Summary: Sarah's making shortbread, and Toby's colouring in. But a discussion about boredom leads to an alleged kidnapping and a proposal. This story really didn't go the way I thought it would; but what can you expect when you write it half-asleep, and in half an hour? Disclaimer: I don't own 'Labyrinth'. Well, except for the DVD and the soundtrack. I'm making no money from this.


"Home for Christmas"

"_I'll be home for Christmas, you can count on me_," Sarah Williams sang, sliding the last tray of shortbread out of the oven. She was wearing a Mrs. Santa Claus apron and hat, the fuzziest slippers she owned, and she left the oven on to create warmth in the kitchen. The heating was broken, which meant that Toby was complaining about his hands being cold while he tried to colour in. He also kept trying to eat whatever was fresh out of the oven.

"Sarah!"

"What, Toby?"

"…_Sarah_."

"What…" She sighed. "Just gimme a sec."

She closed the oven door. Why was it taking so long for her father to find someone to fix the stupid heater? Leaving the oven gloves beside the hot tray, she joined her half-brother at the kitchen table.

"What is it, Tobes?"

"I'm _bored_."

"You're five years old, you have half a dozen colouring books – you haven't even started half of them yet – and a ton of crayons, pencils, and pens. And your mum will kill you if you get pen stains on the table, so put the lids back on them, okay?"

"But, Sarah—"

"You can't be bored. You asked for all this stuff. You were begging for it at the shops the other day."

Toby pouted, and threw the pen he was holding onto the table. Sarah fought not to swear as the tip met the polished wood, and grabbed the washcloth from the sink to scrub at the mark.

"I swear, if this doesn't come off, you're so telling her, _and_ you can clean it yourself," she said. "Don't come crying to me."

She was relieved when the ink came off easily, and she capped the pen before it could do any more damage.

"I wanna go out and make a snowman."

"Tobes, we'll both freeze when we get back inside and can't warm up. Do you want to get frostbite? I can just see you without a nose… ears… fingers…"

Toby scrunched up his nose. "I'm _bored_ just sitting here. Can't I help you make stuff?"

"Why do I get stuck with babysitting the precocious kid?" she muttered, turning back to the mixing bowl. "No," she said aloud. "You'd eat half the mixture before I can cut out the shapes, and then eat the other half as soon as they come out of the oven, burning yourself in the process. That's a definite no, Toby. N-O. _No_."

There was no reply, and she turned around carefully, expecting him to have crept up behind her. But he wasn't right in front of her. He wasn't at the table. He wasn't even in the kitchen.

"Oh God," she whispered, looking around. "Toby? Toby, where are you? Toby?"

He couldn't have gotten that far. She would've heard the backdoor open and close. The same went for the pantry door. So she hurried into the dining room.

Nothing. And he wasn't replying.

Calm down, she told herself. He's around somewhere. You didn't say the words. You didn't even _think_ the words. And the weather's fine; no storm, just snow.

"Snow, like a snowy owl," she said softly. As soon as the words left her mouth, she had to grab the doorway to prop herself up.

"Should the cooking device still be on?"

She gasped as she turned swiftly, and steadied herself again when she saw the Goblin King leaning against the kitchen table, his head cocked in the direction of the oven.

"W-what're you doing here?" she asked.

"If your intention is to spend time searching for young Jareth—"

"His name is _Toby_."

"—then you really must turn that off," he continued, ignoring her interruption. "You wouldn't want to burn the house down while your parents are out, would you? To display devastating carelessness, twice in one lifetime." He shook his head, tutting. "Most unlike the mature young woman you have become, Sarah. My darling Sarah."

Nervous, she edged along the wall until she reached the oven, and quickly turned the dial to zero. She swallowed as she looked over Jareth.

He hadn't aged a minute since she last saw him, right before she said the right words. He was dressed in rich green and gold clothes, with white feathers embroidered on his vest. His riding crop had what looked like gold tinsel wrapped around it, from top to bottom, tucked in through the loop at the end.

"Do you like what you see?" Jareth asked. Her spine immediately straightened.

"Where's my brother?" she said, not a tremor in her voice. Score one for Sarah Williams! "I know you've done something with him."

"What makes you think that?" he said, all wide-eyed innocence. She scowled.

"He can't have disappeared that quickly without magic," she said. "He was right here one moment, I turned my back for a second, and when I turned around again he wasn't there anymore. A minute later – not _even_ a minute later – you appeared. So don't you tell me you have nothing to do with this, because you'd be lying, and I'd know it. We would _both_ know it." She crossed her arms, leaning into the heat of the still-warm oven. It made her feel a little stronger. Jareth seemed to think about it for awhile. She tried not to let herself feel too antsy.

"Very well," he said. "Supposing you were right, what would you do to retrieve him? You have solved my labyrinth once, so I am afraid that is not an option."

"What? Okay, two things." She counted on her fingers. "One, your labyrinth kept changing, so it would never be the same journey twice. Two, I didn't do anything to deserve him getting taken. I didn't wish him away, not out loud, not even in thought."

"You didn't wish it at all?"

"Of course not! I'll never forget what I felt that night." She rubbed her arms, fighting the shiver that had nothing to do with the cold. "I was so scared; I've never felt that scared ever since, not even when those two guys tried to mug me."

"Sarah." He shook his head. "You never wondered how they were unable to succeed, and how you were able to take flight?"

"…That was you?"

"Of course, Sarah."

"Well… well, you didn't take him as some kind of payment, did you? Because I swear, I didn't know anything about that. You can't help someone anonymously and expect them to repay you. That's not why you help people, anyway."

"This has nothing to do with young Jar…" He wisely stopped when her frown deepened. "Toby. He is no longer bored, and I have your undivided attention."

"Where is he?"

"Somewhere you have both visited before," he said, waving his arm towards the doorway. Sarah looked, and saw the throne room of the Goblin Castle. She glanced at Jareth, then took a chance and walked into the image.

"Sarah!" Toby shouted when he saw her. He waved from where he was playing some kind of clapping game with a goblin half his size. There was a chuckle, and Sarah turned, only to realise how close the king was to her. She shoved him away, shocking everyone, and strode to her brother.

"We're going home," she said, grabbing his hand. He pulled back.

"Can't we stay a little longer?" he asked. She squatted beside him.

"What if he keeps us here forever?" she said. He didn't seem to be listening. "We'd never see Mummy and Daddy again." He half-turned his head. "You wouldn't get to see the present I bought you for Christmas."

"What is it?"

"Not telling you. Besides, you can only use it at home, not… not here."

"Are you so sure about that, Sarah?" the Goblin King asked. She huffed, and walked back over to him, fighting the urge to slug him right then and there. Since the attempted mugging, she'd taken lessons in self-defence, and was pretty sure his magic couldn't stand up to her when she was protecting her family. It didn't stop her last time, and that was four years ago.

"What's all this in aid of?" she asked, waving around to indicate Toby and the throne room. "Why've you kidnapped us?"

"As I recall, you voluntarily walked into the proverbial lion's den, my dear Sarah."

"I'd do it again to rescue my brother. Now tell me why you want us here?"

He sighed heavily, sounding unbelievably put-upon for the villain on the piece. "Very well. I wish you to be my bride, Sarah."

Considering his backhanded declaration those four years ago, it really shouldn't have been unexpected. But hearing the words from him made it all seem too horribly real. So her jaw dropped.

"I beg your pardon?" she said.

"I want you to become my queen." He reached out, but she backed away so fast she nearly tripped over a passing goblin. It squeaked, and ran away.

"No," she said. "You can't do this. You can't make me do anything, _your highness_. Just… just send us home."

There were more goblins entering the room. Sarah glanced over at Toby, and saw that he was edging towards her, staring at the approaching creatures. She pulled him to his feet, and swung him up into her arms. He clutched the back of her apron, knocking the hat to the ground.

"I want to go home now," he announced, his voice thankfully steady. If he started to panic, Sarah doubted she could keep calm, even for his sake. She glared at Jareth.

"You send us home _now_," she said, her voice as hard as she could make it. That, combined with her glare, had the desired effect. The king's face fell, he snapped his fingers, and the three of them were in the kitchen. Sarah put Toby back on the floor, and he ran from the room as fast as he could. She pulled off the apron and threw it onto the table, covering Toby's artwork.

"If it counts for anything," Jareth said, tracing the back of one of the chairs, not looking at her, "and I doubt very much that it does, I did not kidnap Tobias. I intended to ensure that he was being looked after while I spoke with you, so that I would indeed have your full attention. I have seen now that I erred in this regard, and that… that you might have felt some small amount of affection for me." He raised his eyes to hers. "At all."

She couldn't speak, but she could nod. He inclined his head in return, then disappeared in a flurry of white feathers, disappearing through the suddenly-open kitchen window. Sarah shut it loudly behind him.

"It's safe now, Tobes!" she called. She checked on the shortbread to give herself something to do, and sighed when she found that it was still warm. So they weren't gone all that long. That was good.

Toby barrelled into her, and she grabbed onto the edge of the counter so they wouldn't both fall over.

"I think I'm gonna go back to colouring," Toby said, all but whimpering. Sarah nodded, running her fingers through his hair.

"Let's take it into the living room, okay?" she said. "We can put on the fire in there. I know we're not supposed to, but I think we can risk it this time, don't you think? And it's still really cold." He was nodding desperately against her thigh. Her heart nearly broke over it. "And did you know something, Toby?"

"What?"

"The fire can keep the bad guys away," she said. "They don't like warm things, like candles, and hugs, and kisses from a mum. I'll make some cocoa, and we can go sit in the lounge and do some colour-ins, okay?"

"…With marshmallows?"

"I wouldn't serve cocoa any other way." She ruffled his light brown locks. "Carry everything in my apron."

She helped him load it up so the things wouldn't fall out, and listened carefully as she made the hot chocolate, fishing out the marshmallows like it was second nature.

That was when she noticed the flash of red on the table. It was her Mrs. Santa Claus hat.

Sarah hurried through the rest of the cocoa-making process, dumped in the marshmallows, then took the two mugs through to the living room.

Their parents could do the rest of the cooking for the holiday season.

* * *

**This went in an unexpected direction. Usually I write romance for Sarah and Jareth, but apparently not today.**

**Wrote this in about half an hour or something six days before Christmas, because I felt like it. No plotting beforehand; just writing, writing, writing. Completely didn't turn out as Christmassy as I'd thought it would be. Ah well. Such is whatsit. Life? That's the baby.**

**Sorry if I disappointed anyone. What did you all think? And, uh, happy Christmas?**


End file.
